Profit & Peril

by Charissa Dufour

  Bit squared her shoulders, refusing to be intimidated by the crowd. She pushed through, ignoring their criticisms. They could hate her all they wanted. It wasn’t her job to be liked, by Carter or anyone else. Her job was to protect the reactor, and she would do that no matter what obstacles she faced. The temptation to push and shove back grew as they jostled her, but she refused to meet their low expectations. She was better than they thought, and she would act accordingly.

  She reached the far end of the crowd and stumbled out, adjusting her jacket for fear someone might have noticed her shoulder holster. Not looking back, despite their increasingly-cruel words, she continued towards the core.

  Don’t give them the satisfaction, she told herself.

  Bit hurried down the corridor towards the security checkpoint, preparing herself to see Carter. She could only assume it had been the guard who had spread the word of an indentured servant working aboard the space station. She even thought about asking him out herself, just to mess with him, but rejected the idea. She didn’t really want to have it rubbed in her face that she wasn’t wanted, by him or half the locals.

  Carter stood at his post outside the airlock leading into the core. He spotted her and averted his eyes, trying his best to look natural, but Bit easily saw through it. She presented her ID to him and he took it with a snap of his wrist. Bit ignored the sting in her fingers as she eyed Carter’s wrist. A thin line of burned flesh peeked out from under the cuff of his sleeve. Bit kept her speculations to herself while Carter scanned the card, handing it back to her as he pressed his thumb against the reader.

  “Bonder,” Carter grumbled under his breath.

  Bit felt her feet hesitate as she walked through the door. She forced herself to keep moving, ignoring the insult. Bonder was the worst thing someone could call an indentured servant. No one in the universe wanted to be permanently attached to another, except maybe through marriage. It was considered weak to have your existence be reliant on someone else. And an indentured servant was completely reliant on their owner—bonded to them in every way possible.

  She pushed forward, ignoring his insult and finally heard the door shut behind her. She walked down the long corridor and reached the second checkpoint, where she passed through without incident.

  Bit reached the door to their closet to find it sitting open, the trap triggered.

  Could it really be Carter? Was all this just a guise to distract me? she wondered, thinking of how the guard had suddenly had to leave their “date.”

  Bit had assumed it was because she had revealed her true status in the world, but what if Carter had wanted a chance at the reactor again.

  She carefully pushed the door open. From what she could tell, the reactor sat untouched from yesterday, but she couldn’t be sure until Forrest got there.

  Risking being overheard, Bit pulled out her seldom-used comm. device and called in the ship.

  “Bit?” Reese asked, evidently having drawn the short straw to sit in the bridge for the first half of the day.

  “Hey, Reese. I forgot my lunch. Can you have Randal send it in with Forrest?” she asked, trying to be as cryptic as possible.

  The message made no sense, and she knew it. She and the engineers ate here in the closet, eating food provided by Zagiri and the resistance. Besides, even if Bit did need to bring food, she wouldn’t ask Randal to give it to Forrest. That would be Vance’s area of expertise.

  “Uh…sure,” Reese replied after a long pause.

  “Thanks.”

  Bit flipped off the comm. and went to a utility station for cleaning products. A few minutes later Zagiri appeared at the doorway, finding Bit on her hands and knees scrubbing the floor and doorway.

  “Do I want to know?”

  Bit craned her neck to look into the rest of engineering; no one was within earshot. “The trap was tripped. Help me clean up the spray. It will burn your skin if you touch it.”

  “Even dried like this?”

  “Want to risk it?”

  Zagiri shook her head before bending down and helping Bit. They were just finishing the clean up when Forrest and Jeremiah joined them. They pulled the now-clean door shut and Forrest produced a new trap.

  “Sorry, took us a while to decrypt your message,” Forrest said as he handed over the contraption. “Randal said this spray will dye their skin purple.”

  “Good,” Bit replied, setting the trap aside.

  She would rig it up when they were finished with their measly six-hour shift.

  “Did you guys see that crowd outside of our bay?” asked Jeremiah.

  The teenager didn’t speak much, but when he did, he had a knack for putting his foot in his mouth. Forrest and Zagiri looked at him, their expressions pointed. Bit glanced at the floor, unsure how to tell the impressionable youth that the protesters were there for her.

  “Jack will take care of this,” Forrest insisted.

  Jeremiah glanced between Forrest and Bit. “Take care of what?”

  Bit finally looked up at them. “There’s nothing to take care of. Everyone is entitled to their opinions.”

  “Yeah, but Bit…”

  “Let’s get to work,” she said, interrupting him.

  Bit glanced at Zagiri, and though she saw sympathy in the other woman’s eyes, Zagiri didn’t try to reassure her. Instead they got to work. They began by confirming that no further damage had been done to the reactor. Whoever tripped the booby-trap hadn’t gotten past the burning substance.

  “Well, at least it worked,” Forrest said as they finished their examination of the reactor and began working on the next step.

  Bit contented herself with passing them tools, giving Jeremiah the chance to be more hands on. They worked through the day, making good progress. If they could avoid anymore catastrophes they might get it finished in less than a week.

  “Man, that really set us back,” Forrest said as they stood watch.

  Bit set up the new trap, attaching the canister at the bottom of the doorway and pointing it up, hoping to catch the perpetrator in the face. She assumed after last night he or she would look down to avoid any new spray. Carefully, she closed the door and climbed to her feet.

  “That should do it,” she said as she turned back to follow the others out of engineering.

  They reached the outer check point, where Carter repeated his abuse. Forrest turned, stepping into Carter’s personal space.

  “What did you just say?” he demanded.

  Bit grabbed his arm and pulled him back before Carter could react. As much as she loved Forrest, Carter could wipe the floor with the engineer.

  “He’s not worth it,” Bit said, still not looking Carter in the eye.

  Forrest allowed her and Jeremiah to drag him back, no doubt aware of his chances against the guard. They turned away and headed toward the ship. To no one’s surprise, the crowd had returned in time for their return journey.

  Forrest and Jeremiah crowded around her, nudging people out of the way as they worked their way through the screaming mob. Bit kept her focus straight ahead, refusing to hear the repeated use of the word “bonder” and other nasty phrases.

  “Get outta our space station.”

  “No scum!”

  “Go home!”

  The longer it took to work their way through the growing crowd, the harder it became for Bit to close her ears to their cries.

  “Bonders eat shit!”

  “Humans only!”

  “Don’t listen to them, Bit,” Forrest called into her ear just as they emerged from the crowd into the bay where their ship waited.

  They hurried down the long corridor and Jeremiah hit the release pad for the airlock. Once inside, the sounds of the crowd died away.

  “Good, you got her through,” Jack said when the airlock opened and they stepped into the ship.

  Randal appeared from the crew quarters, his face stern. “You didn’t say his reaction was that strong.”

  “You talked to her?” Jack d
emanded.

  “I didn’t think it was,” Bit said. “My date with Carter didn’t go well. He found out I was an Indentured Servant and ended the date. I never thought he would turn the masses against me.”

  “This your first experience with anti-debt crowds?” Randal came forward, concern on his features.

  Bit nodded. “I knew ISes are considered… lesser, but never anything like this. Johannesburg is full of them.”

  Jack took a deep breath. “It’s been a while, but a couple decades ago the banks started taking over everything. That’s when they became the real powers in the universe, not the planetary governments. Fear rose up, and a lot of people became extremely anti-debt. That anti-debt sentiment evolved into an anti-debtor mind set.”

  “Which I now pay for,” Bit mumbled.

  “I’ll have Vidor come in and see if we can get you switched out for a different security officer. After all, you’re not exactly incognito anymore.”

  Bit shook her head. “It would look weird if I suddenly started hiding. Besides, I won’t give them the satisfaction of seeing me hide.”

  She spotted a smile on Randal’s face, but Jack still looked concerned. “You sure?”

  Bit nodded.

  “We still need to speak with Vidor,” said Jack.

  “I’ll go call him,” Randal said before running up the staircase to the bridge.

  Bit followed at a slower pace, heading for the conference room on the same level. She sat by herself, content to wait for the others to join her. She had a lot to think about and most of it wasn’t encouraging.

  Bit hadn’t realized how sheltered her life had been, first living in a city like Johannesburg where so many people owned indentureds and then ending up with such a gracious, open crew. She squeezed her eyes shut. What was her niece or nephew going through? Were they scorned and spat on as she had been today?

  “You okay?” Randal asked, interrupting her thoughts as he entered the conference room.

  “Yeah.”

  “You sure you’re gonna be able to finish this assignment.”

  Bit nodded again. “Yeah, of course. Wouldn’t dream of quitting.”

  Secretly she wondered if she did have the fortitude to face the mob twice a day, but she kept those thoughts to herself. Whatever came tomorrow, she would face. She always had.

  Jack came in and took a seat.

  “You telling your contact with the company?” Randal asked.

  Jack nodded. “Have to.”

  Neither Randal nor Bit had a response to that, and so they stayed silent, waiting for Vidor to arrive. Finally, their contact with the resistance and his companion from before arrived.

  “What is that mob going on about?” Vidor asked as they took their seats across from Jack and his crew.

  “Me.”

  They both frowned at Bit. “Why would they be protesting you?”

  “I’m an indentured servant,” Bit said.

  Both men squirmed in their seat, their eyes flicking between Randal and Jack.

  “I own her debt,” Jack said, finally speaking up.

  “And you let me give her a clearance?”

  “She is as deserving of a clearance as any of my crew. She has no criminal record.”

  “She’s a debtor,” growled Vidor.

  “That isn’t a criminal record,” interjected Randal.

  “So this is what you called us here to confess?”

  “I’m not confessing anything,” said Jack. “I’m informing you that there is a mob outside my ship making it difficult for my crew to do their job… the job you want completed quickly and discretely. Deal with it!”

  Vidor’s eyes widened at the command in Jack’s voice.

  “What happened to your wrist?” Bit asked, pointing to Vidor’s companion.

  A white bandage covered his wrist. “Is your indentured speaking to me?”

  Jack sighed, rolling his eyes. “What happened to you wrist?”

  Bit kept her mouth shut, annoyed at the way Jack suddenly had to talk for her.

  “I don’t see how it is any of your business,” growled Vidor’s nameless companion.

  Bit opened her mouth to speak, but Randal beat her to it. “Little defensive if it’s not something to hide.”

  “My friend doesn’t need to answer your questions.”

  “I burned it pulling something out of the oven, okay!”

  Randal shrugged. “Just curious. No offense meant.”

  “Are we through?” demanded Vidor as he rose to his feet, his companion a second behind him.

  “Sure. You’ll deal with that mob?” Jack asked.

  Vidor and his companion glared at Bit for a second. “I’ll see what I can do.”

  The two men left, needing no escort to find their way out.

  “You think Vidor’s friend is our culprit?” Randal asked.

  Bit shrugged. “He’s not the only person I’ve seen with a burned wrist today.”

  “Who else?”

  “Carter, the guard.”

  Both men’s eyebrows rose into their hairlines in response to statement.

  “Good thing we didn’t tell Vidor about the new trap. We’ll see if anyone has a dyed face tomorrow,” Bit said smiling, thinking of Carter with a purple face.

  Jack waited for the static over the comm. device to clear. “Douglas?”

  “What happened now?”

  The static had cleared quicker than Jack had expected. “No more damage to the reactor, but our trap was triggered, so someone did try to ruin it again.”

  “Dammit. Can’t you guys take care of anything?”

  “We’re doing our best within the confines of the station’s culture. They have rules we have to abide by.”

  “You guys are doing something illegal. What do you care about rules?”

  Jack sighed. “We break too many rules and they start noticing.”

  “I’m at Widdly. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

  “That’s not necessary,” Jack said into a blank comm.; Douglas had already disconnected. “Dammit.”

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Bit stared up at the purple stain clinging to the metal door and doorjamb. The liquid had trailed down the metal in little rivulets before drying out. Bit had no idea when the perpetrator had entered their little closet, but she didn’t need to know. They could find someone burned and stained. While the stain was easy to wash off the metal door, it would stain deep into their invader’s skin.

  Still, it was concerning that someone was still trying to gain entrance into their reactor closet. She decided to ignore the stain and worry about the reactor. From what her uneducated eyes could tell, it looked the same as it had the night before. Forrest would be able to say for certain, and he was bringing the next trap in his tool box. It was too involved for her to smuggle in inside her jacket without risking revealing her shoulder holster, not to mention the device itself.

  Just as Bit was growing bored enough to consider cleaning off the stain, Forrest and Jeremiah showed up.

  “Another visitor?” Forrest asked, glancing at the stained doorway.

  “Yep. Did they ruin anything?”

  Forrest and Jeremiah began examining the reactor while Bit pulled her latest trap out of the tool box. A moment later Zagiri appeared and joined them in their examination. Bit immediately began unscrewing the floor panel directly in front of doorway, just inside their little room.

  “What are you doing?” Zagiri asked over her shoulder.

  “We’re stepping up our game with our traps. They’ve grown to expect it when they open the door—some sort of spray on them—so we’re changing it up.” Bit forced herself to stop talking; she didn’t know if Zagiri was the one feeding their enemies the information, but she didn’t want to tell her what the trap would do.

  Zagiri didn’t even turn to look at Bit’s work while she worked. Bit thought the engineer could be trusted, but she wasn’t taking a risk on it. Vidor and his man didn’t know about their la
test trap, either. Hopefully the knock-out gas would do the trick and they’d catch their saboteur.

  While the engineers worked, having declared the reactor sound, Bit pried the floor panel up and began rigging the pressure plates. It took her nearly all day to set the newest trap, pausing often to help the engineers.

  Finally, the engineers packed up their tools and prepared to cross the threshold.

  “Is it safe?” Jeremiah asked.

  “Yes. I haven’t finished hooking it all up yet. Go ahead and cross. I’ll meet you at the ship as soon as I can.”

  They left her to her work, lowered the floor panel over the pressure plate, adjusting them to take the pressure of the heavy metal plate, and finally attaching the canister of sinister sleep gas. She pulled the door shut, the bottom of the door barely clearing the now elevated plate. With the room shut off, she dusted off her hands and adjusted her jacket. It had been hard working with the shoulder holster on, but she had managed.

  Bit eyed the door one last time before turning away and heading toward the exit. She glanced down another of the winding corridor to find a man just turning away from her. Bit stared at the place where he had been. Something about his profile looked familiar, but she couldn’t place him. A voice inside her said she didn’t know him from the space station, but some time before their arrival. She shook her head and continued to walk.

  She reached the final check point, ignored Carter’s scowl, and turned toward the ship. Though Vidor had calmed the protestors with the promise that she wasn’t staying permanently, she still saw people wearing homemade t-shirts with their slogans stitched across their chests. Bit also found traveling in the space station difficult as the occasional pedestrian would find it necessary to walk right into her path, bumping her shoulder or forcing her to stop suddenly.

  Bit absently wondered why they didn’t protest the man who owned her debt, rather than her. After all, it wasn’t her fault she was in this situation. Slowly, she realized there was no way for these men and women to know her story. All they saw was someone stupid or selfish enough to get themselves into debt. Bit thought of Jack’s brief history lesson. There had been a time when the banks controlled the universe… literally. People feared going back to that time, and she represented that possible downward slide.